Baseline Groundwater Monitoring in the Transboundary Liard Basin for Source Water Protection

利亚德盆地是加拿大第二大非常规油气储集层。它位于不列颠哥伦比亚省、育空地区和西北地区的边界内。非常规石油和天然气开发需要水力压裂，也就是通常所说的“水力压裂”。自1950年S时代以来，该地区一直支持常规油气生产。然而，最近定向钻井和水力压裂技术的进步推动了非常规石油和天然气行业的增长。这些活动引起了公众对石油和天然气生产对环境的影响的担忧，特别是对当地淡水供应的影响。北部社区依靠地表水或浅层地下水作为他们的主要水源。尽管浅水看起来很干净，但很容易被污染。因此，有必要寻找其他淡水来源，特别是来自未受污染的深层基岩的淡水。然而，尚不清楚更深的基岩是否也面临石油和天然气生产的风险。如果这些基岩层受到与石油和天然气钻探活动有关的天然气、盐、金属或有机污染的污染，它们将不是未来清洁水的可靠来源。事实上，这些较深的基岩层可能会成为污染物到达浅水供应的路径，从而加剧了问题。这项研究将制定一项计划，利用地质学、地球物理、地球化学、地下水流量和质量测量的组合来监测地下水。它将建立一个可由西北领土政府运营的监测井网络，以支持Acho Dene Koe第一民族和利亚德堡哈姆雷特的居民。这些监测井和地下水系统知识将被用来评估石油和天然气开发的影响，并帮助了解淡水地下水资源用于供水的可靠性。拟议的工作代表着朝着保护北部水资源迈出的重要一步，同时确保加拿大石油和天然气行业的负责任发展。

The Liard Basin is the second largest reservoir for unconventional oil and gas in Canada. It is situated within the boundaries of British Columbia, Yukon and the Northwest Territories. Unconventional oil and gas development requires hydraulic fracturing, commonly termed 'fracking'. This region has supported conventional oil and gas production since the 1950's. However, recent improvements in directional drilling and 'fracking' have led to growth in the unconventional oil and gas sector. These activities have given rise to public worries about the impacts of oil and natural gas production on the environment, especially local freshwater supplies. Northern communities rely on surface water or shallow groundwater as their primary source of water. Although shallow water may appear clean, it can be easily contaminated. Therefore, there is a need to find alternative sources of freshwater, specifically from deep unpolluted bedrock. However, it is not clear if deeper bedrock is also at risk from oil and gas production. If these bedrock layers become contaminated by natural gas, salts, metals, or organic pollution related to oil and gas drilling activities, they will not be a reliable source of clean water in the future. In fact, these deeper bedrock layers may act as a path for contaminants to reach shallow water supplies, adding to the problem. This research will develop a plan for monitoring groundwater using a combination of geology, geophysics, geochemistry, groundwater flow and quality measurements. It will create a network of monitoring wells that can be operated by the Government of the Northwest Territories in support of the Acho Dene Koe First Nation and residents of the Hamlet of Fort Liard. These monitoring wells and groundwater system knowledge will be used to assess impacts from oil and gas development and help understand the reliability of fresh groundwater resources for water supply. The proposed work represents an important step toward safeguarding northern water resources, while ensuring responsible development of Canada's oil and gas sector.